


Translations

by oneforeveryday



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Dad Sokka, Dad Zuko, Gen, Izumi loves zuko she’s just a teen who makes mistakes, M/M, one badoka line if you bring your microscope, sokka loves zuko so much, they’re the best parents, this is not my best work but it needs to see the light, zuko can communicate hes just not good at it
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-30
Updated: 2020-09-30
Packaged: 2021-03-07 20:42:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,988
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26723845
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/oneforeveryday/pseuds/oneforeveryday
Summary: While visiting the South Pole Izumi accidentally neglects her father back home.
Relationships: Izumi & Kya (Avatar), Izumi & Sokka (Avatar), Izumi & Zuko (Avatar), Sokka/Zuko (Avatar)
Comments: 28
Kudos: 404





	Translations

**Author's Note:**

> Heyy this is super rushed I did in like 2 hours instead of doing physics hw, it's not stellar by any means and I only read it over once but here you go anyway :))

Izumi bites her lip, concentrating hard on warming her fingers just enough to braid Kya’s hair without her mittens on and not fry her cousin's hair off in the process. The girls have gotten much closer in the four months she’s been in the South Pole, having bonded over their unique bending abilities and their mutual annoyance for Kya’s two brothers. 

It was definitely an adjustment from her life as an only child in the Fire Palace, but overall Izumi loves the south. She had jumped at the first opportunity to accompany dad on his six month ambassador-related visit to his homeland. Heir to the throne or not, she was just as much Water Tribe as she was Fire Nation and wasn’t going to pass up the opportunity to get some offtime from her princess duties and relax at her second home. Papa wasn’t the biggest fan of the plan, but she had insisted that at fourteen she was ready to see the more of the world and the south outside of their vists. Besides, Izumi had known she would get her way. Papa always said that his time traveling in the other nations was one of his greatest strengths as Firelord. 

She ties the end of the braid with a ribbon and flips it onto Kya’s shoulder, returning her cousin’s appreciative grin while snagging a sea prune off her plate as compensation. It’s mealtime, but not everyone around the fireplace adheres to that. Her aunt and uncle are talking more than eating, grandpa is telling a story to Tenzin and Bumi, and dad is hunched over a letter. Normally they’d eat with the whole tribe outside, but it’s even colder today so they’ve all crammed into Grandpa and Bato’s igloo. 

“Hey Zumi, do you have any extra parchment?” Dad asks, finally looking up from what he was writing. 

“Yup,” She replies, and pops the ‘p’. “In my trunk.”

“Thanks, sweetie. I’ll be right back.” He smiles, carefully placing the letter on the furs where he was sitting and ducks through the entrance. 

It’s a while before he steps inside again, his entire demeanor changed. Dad looks sterner, _angrier_ , than she's seen him in a very long time and her heart just about falls into her stomach when he speaks. 

“Izumi we need to talk. Outside.” 

She gulps, sparing a glance at Kya who looks nervous for her. Even Aunt Katara seems startled by her brother’s tone, but Izumi ignores their concern as she follows her father, face red with humiliation.

\---

They walk away from the igloo without a word, and while she's thankful he’s giving them privacy she can’t help but fear that he’s going to yell at her even though it’s a rarity for him. Dad halts abruptly, breaking the silence with a shaky breath. “I found your letters, when I was looking for paper.” 

For a moment she’s confused, she doesn’t remember any letters and even less so ones that contained anything remotely incriminating.

“The ones from your father.” His voice is calm and icy as he meets her gaze, void of all the affection she’s used to. This facade continues for only a second before he looks off with an expression she can’t recognize. “Did you even open _one_ of them?” 

And _oh._

Izumi _can_ recognize that she messed up. Big time.

Her voice is small and there’s no real resolve in it as she tries to explain herself. “I read the first one? They’re just so long and it takes a while to reply so I just-- forgot about them...” 

Izumi trails off and the shame of what she’s done washes over her in relentless waves. She misses papa. Of course she does, but the letters were _long_ and she’s just been so caught up in this new experience that she let some stuff get away from her. Some very important stuff if the horrified look on dad’s face is anything to go by. 

“You know how much he cares about you, right? He misses you, Izumi.”

"I care about him too! I do miss him but I just-”

Her father cuts her off, his eyes hard again. “You have an awfully nice way of showing it.”

_Ouch_

Dad sighs deeply. “ We’ll talk more in the morning. I love you, Zumi, but this kind of behavior isn’t okay. I hope you realize how hurtful it is.”

She stands there alone feeling like the world's worst daughter for a solid five minutes before retreating to the igloo she shares with Kya and making a beeline for her trunk. She counts thirteen total letters from her papa, including the one she opened but never replied to. Judging by the thickness of the envelopes they are all probably pages long, but she swears to herself she’ll read every word he wrote to her.

She carefully opens the most recent one despite the way her hands shake. There's a small parcel that she knows is tea leaves from the smell and a pressed Firelily delicately folded inside along with the letter, but she sets them aside to begin reading. 

_Izumi,_

_How are you? Your father told me you completed your ice dodging task and you received the mark of the wise. I find that's very fitting, you have always been perceptive beyond your years. I had no doubts you would succeed, but I’m so incredibly proud of you though I wish I could have been there to see it happen._

There’s much more, but Kya interrupts with her timid presence at the entrance. 

“My mom and your dad are talking about you in her igloo if you want to listen. I don’t know what happened but he seemed pretty mad when he came back.”

Caught up in her guilt, Izumi never had the chance to worry about any punishment she might receive for this past dad’s disappointment. Her fathers were fair and as lenient as they could be while maintaining her security, but she’s not a stranger to extra chores or privileges being temporarily revoked. 

“Oh shit.” 

Kya grimaces. “Yeah, might want to listen in to know what you're facing tomorrow.” 

\---

She crouches next to Aunt Katara and Uncle Aang’s igloo, out of sight. Thankfully the wind is on her side tonight, muffling the crunch of her boots but not conversation.

“I know she’s a teenager, Tara, but do you know what I would have done for a letter from dad when I was her age? And she’s just completely ignored Zuko for _months_.” 

“I know. I’m shocked too. And Zuko didn’t say anything about it?” Her aunt’s words are said much calmer than her dad’s, but she still sounds sad. 

_Disappointed,_ Izumi’s brain supplies.

“What do you think? He’s gotten so much better, but you know how he is. He probably convinced himself it’s somehow his fault.” 

Dad sighs again and she can picture him running a hand through his hair and messing up the wolf tail. “That’s another thing; I sometimes wish we told her more about how Zuko grew up. She has an idea obviously, we’ve made it very clear that Ozai was a piece of shit, but none of the details. And I’m glad there’s some things she’ll never understand, but she also doesn’t understand Zuko.” 

Katara replies softly, “How so?”

“I mean think about it, Tara. It took a long time for us to understand him too, and we’ve raised Izumi similarly to how mom and dad raised us. She doesn’t truly get how hard some things are for him you know? I know now that when he invites me to sit at the turtleduck pond or writes letters or drinks tea with me he’s actually saying ‘I love you’, but does Izumi? And as much as I’m upset with her for not responding, how could she know how important that stuff is to him? That was the way his mom and Iroh showed they loved him.” 

“Do you want to tell her? The details, I mean.” 

There's a pause and Izumi finds herself holding her breath while waiting for his answer. 

“We’ll have to tell her about his Agni Kais before she learns about them in school, but the rest of it is up to Zuko. I know he doesn’t want to affect her relationship with her grandmother and Azula or for her to think differently of him, but Spirits, Katara, I don’t want Izumi to be another person that hurts him. She would never intentionally, but I’ve always had my worries with her favoring me.” 

Izumi wants to barge in and declare that it’s not true, she loves both of her dads equally, but she doesn’t think the knowledge of her eavesdropping would go over well with either of them. 

It’s her aunt who comes to her defense. “Izumi adores Zuko, Sokka.” 

“Yeah. Yeah, you’re right, I worded that wrong. But she’s always been more interested in Water Tribe culture and Zuko is a bit more busy at the palace than I am. He’s the parent that has to rush off to meetings more often than not and the one who teaches her about her duties and teaches her firebending. I’m the parent who tells them to take a break and gives her the chance to go on what's basically a sixth month vacation for her.”

The end of the sentence rings in her ears. A sixth month vacation means two more months until she can see papa and apologize in person and hug him tight and tell him that she loves him _so much._ Tears are streaming down her face before she can wipe them and she can’t help the strangled sob that makes it past her lips. 

Dad and Katara definitely hear her, emerging from the snowy entrance looking mildly concerned. The siblings share a look before her aunt silently returns to the community igloo, leaving Izumi with her father. 

“How much of that did you hear?” 

“A lot.” Her voice wobbles and dad finally cracks a small grin.

“Okay, lesson number two for the night is that it’s wrong to listen in on private matters. I know you’re a lot older and mature now, and I’m _so_ proud of you, but some things you’re still not ready to know, got it?” His tone is a lot lighter now, his eyes soft as they meet hers.

“Got it.” 

“And I think you’ve learned lesson number one as well. I know you didn't mean any harm, but ignoring people you care about for this long isn’t alright.” 

She nods and leans into the arm he’s put around her shoulder. “I want to see him again so bad.”

“Me too, Zumi. Hey, I can try to clear some time up and I’m sure Aang will let us take Appa up there, but we’d only be able to see him for a day or two before coming back, can you handle that?” 

\---

“Papa!” 

He looks bewildered and the turtleducks he was feeding scamper back into the pond. She pays them no mind, crashing into him and wrapping her arms around his neck, her huge grin hidden in the crook of his shoulder. 

“Izumi, what are you doing here? Where’s your father?”

She can’t see him, but she can hear the smile in papa’s voice. “Unloading Appa, he’ll be here soon.” 

It’s a long moment before they pull away. “Is everything alright at the pole?” 

“Yeah, papa. We just missed you.” 

“I don’t have anything prepared, I was just sitting here with the turtleducks, you can join me if you’d like. Or I can call for the chef or your friends, the fish catch was good this morning.” 

Izumi shakes her head, taking his arm. “No, this is perfect, papa. Let’s sit.”

His eyes twinkle the way they do when he’s the most happy. 

“I love you.”

“I love you too, Zumi.”

How could she not know? He’s told her twice today. 

  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  



End file.
